[Jikokaiki]

Hey all, I am in need of some guidance. I am looking to upgrade from my ipod classic and have been reading up on different DAPs for about a week now and it has kind of become an obsession and I think I just need to choose one for my sanity's sake lol.

My budget is $300-500ish. I would love to keep it closer to $300, but if there is something that makes a world of difference I am willing to go up a bit.

I am looking for something with good sound quality, lots of storage space a decent UI, and good battery life. I am not opposed to other features such as bluetooth and streaming capabilities but they really aren't selling points for me. With my current headphone set up (ITO1 and Grado Sr80e) I am not too worried with a dap being able to power them but it would be nice if it could power better ones if/when I decide to upgrade.

I think I have narrowed my decision down to two: ibasso DX120 and the fiio m11. I like how they both have a very large storage capacity and really I am leaning towards the dx120 since it is cheaper and from what I have read the sound quality is decent but the m11 is just so sexy looking to me. xD any thoughts either between these two or even a different dap entirely? I am open to any suggestions!

One concern I do have and it may be groundless is the life span of a dap, especially android based ones. A lot of them strike me as a smartphone without the phone and I haven't had a smartphone last me 5 years without crapping out on me. Is it possible to get 10 years or so out of these modern daps like I have my ipod?

Edit: then again there is the plenue d2, but I heard the ui leaves much to be desired

 

[buke9]

Hey all, I am in need of some guidance. I am looking to upgrade from my ipod classic and have been reading up on different DAPs for about a week now and it has kind of become an obsession and I think I just need to choose one for my sanity's sake lol.

My budget is $300-500ish. I would love to keep it closer to $300, but if there is something that makes a world of difference I am willing to go up a bit.

I am looking for something with good sound quality, lots of storage space a decent UI, and good battery life. I am not opposed to other features such as bluetooth and streaming capabilities but they really aren't selling points for me. With my current headphone set up (ITO1 and Grado Sr80e) I am not too worried with a dap being able to power them but it would be nice if it could power better ones if/when I decide to upgrade.

I think I have narrowed my decision down to two: ibasso DX120 and the fiio m11. I like how they both have a very large storage capacity and really I am leaning towards the dx120 since it is cheaper and from what I have read the sound quality is decent but the m11 is just so sexy looking to me. xD any thoughts either between these two or even a different dap entirely? I am open to any suggestions!

One concern I do have and it may be groundless is the life span of a dap, especially android based ones. A lot of them strike me as a smartphone without the phone and I haven't had a smartphone last me 5 years without crapping out on me. Is it possible to get 10 years or so out of these modern daps like I have my ipod?

Edit: then again there is the plenue d2, but I heard the ui leaves much to be desired

As for a Dap lasting 10 years I don’t think anyone can say for sure on that as ones that can stream has only been just a few years now and the early ones were expensive. I have to say I haven’t heard the iBasso or the Fiio but the earlier Fiio’s I wasn’t impressed with like the X7 didn’t get to hear all the amp modules but just didn’t like it that much. The newer ones like the M11 do look promising though. I can just go on what I’ve heard or have though. I have a HiBy R6 Pro that I like a lot it has all the bells and whistles,Bluetooth,WiFi ,Streaming and can even make WiFi phone calls so just about anything when on WiFi . While over your budget there is the HiBy R5 that I heard at CanJam New York is a contender a open Android player so all the apps you want. Doesn’t have the power of the R6 Pro but I believe close to the M11. So another to throw into the mix.

 

[yong_shun]

Go for DX160 or even Sony ZX507 if your budget can be stretched.

 

[bzippy]

Big FiiO fan here. I am behind the times and still using an X5ii, but I still really love it. And I had the first gen X3 before that (the one that put them on the map).

What I love in particular (aside from just the great sound) is the versatility of outputs that suit all my my specific needs, because I use my FiiO DAPs as the primary music source in my life: direct to headphones, line-out to or digital out my main home hifi system, digital out to my desktop headphone amp system, line-out in the car, and line-out to various portable speakers wherever I may roam.

Anyway, if I had your budget I'd do a new M11 (not the Pro version because it's over budget, the differences sound quite subtle from what I've read, and there's just one SD card slot). When I decide to upgrade that's most likely to the one I'll get, even if it's a year from now.

Good luck.

 

[FullBlownEargasam]

I got the Fiio M11 a few weeks back (my first DAP as well). I am in love. The sound is great. It is so much better than the other portable options I have tried (strapping a dac to my iphone). Someone else on here asked about portable options and I can't believe I wasted my time with stacking options. There are a ton of features in this unit, the sound is great, and for once I am not looking for anything else to replace it (yet).

I can't compare it to the ibasso but I did a ton of research before buying the M11. If you have any specific questions about it shoot me a PM and I would be happy to do my best helping you out with the decision.

 

[taffy2207]

The Plenue D2 is a great option for the price.

Great Battery life, great amp, great sound and great EQ'ing options. The background is black like 'falling into the Abyss' Black. People rage about the UI but honestly it's not that bad, but compared to Android it is. It's a little short on storage (128GB external & 64GB internal). It's genre friendly, pretty much everything sounds great on it. There's a few minor bugs with it that should be sorted out via Firmware. I describe it as the perfect Commuters DAP, much like it's predecessor the Plenue D.

The truth is when it comes to DAP's there's not much difference when it comes to the actual audio and more importantly to what we can actually hear. You pay mostly for the badge or features.

Draw up a list of features that's most important to you. If you don't need certain features, don't pay for them and beware of the Head-fi hype machine. The best advice I can give is avoid reviewers / blogs (It's just 1 opinion after all), go to the threads and see what people who have actually bought the DAP say about it, who use it every day and most importantly what it's like after it has gone through a few firmware updates, something that is sadly lacking in reviews. Reviews are pretty much first impressions, if you want lasting impressions the threads are the best places to visit to gauge opinion.

Good luck with your search.

 

[Jikokaiki]

As for a Dap lasting 10 years I don’t think anyone can say for sure on that as ones that can stream has only been just a few years now and the early ones were expensive. I have to say I haven’t heard the iBasso or the Fiio but the earlier Fiio’s I wasn’t impressed with like the X7 didn’t get to hear all the amp modules but just didn’t like it that much. The newer ones like the M11 do look promising though. I can just go on what I’ve heard or have though. I have a HiBy R6 Pro that I like a lot it has all the bells and whistles,Bluetooth,WiFi ,Streaming and can even make WiFi phone calls so just about anything when on WiFi . While over your budget there is the HiBy R5 that I heard at CanJam New York is a contender a open Android player so all the apps you want. Doesn’t have the power of the R6 Pro but I believe close to the M11. So another to throw into the mix.

After going back and reading up about the R5 it sounds awesome! I just might have to get that one. The $300 price is very nice too! Even though I am also tempted by the R6 pro even though I don't really need it and any boost in quality would probably be lost on me xD Thanks for the recommendation

 

[Jikokaiki]

I got the Fiio M11 a few weeks back (my first DAP as well). I am in love. The sound is great. It is so much better than the other portable options I have tried (strapping a dac to my iphone). Someone else on here asked about portable options and I can't believe I wasted my time with stacking options. There are a ton of features in this unit, the sound is great, and for once I am not looking for anything else to replace it (yet).

I can't compare it to the ibasso but I did a ton of research before buying the M11. If you have any specific questions about it shoot me a PM and I would be happy to do my best helping you out with the decision.

I am glad to hear you are enjoying! I have definitely been taking a much closer look at the M11
That would be greatly appreciated! I will be sure to shoot you a message if/when I come up with questions!

The Plenue D2 is a great option for the price.

Great Battery life, great amp, great sound and great EQ'ing options. The background is black like 'falling into the Abyss' Black. People rage about the UI but honestly it's not that bad, but compared to Android it is. It's a little short on storage (128GB external & 64GB internal). It's genre friendly, pretty much everything sounds great on it. There's a few minor bugs with it that should be sorted out via Firmware. I describe it as the perfect Commuters DAP, much like it's predecessor the Plenue D.

The truth is when it comes to DAP's there's not much difference when it comes to the actual audio and more importantly to what we can actually hear. You pay mostly for the badge or features.

Draw up a list of features that's most important to you. If you don't need certain features, don't pay for them and beware of the Head-fi hype machine. The best advice I can give is avoid reviewers / blogs (It's just 1 opinion after all), go to the threads and see what people who have actually bought the DAP say about it, who use it every day and most importantly what it's like after it has gone through a few firmware updates, something that is sadly lacking in reviews. Reviews are pretty much first impressions, if you want lasting impressions the threads are the best places to visit to gauge opinion.

Good luck with your search.

I will definitely take a closer look at the D2 but the storage might be a deal killer for me. Thank you the information though!

haha yeah I definitely put way too much stock in reviewers even though I know I shouldn't. I am thinking most DAP's these days are all jammed packed with features that I don't really need. I really just want a nice simple music player like a Ipod Classic but better. I don't really need streaming, wifi, a web browser, or facebook on my music player xD

 

[buke9]

After going back and reading up about the R5 it sounds awesome! I just might have to get that one. The $300 price is very nice too! Even though I am also tempted by the R6 pro even though I don't really need it and any boost in quality would probably be lost on me xD Thanks for the recommendation

Not a problem I'm actually responding from the R6 while listening to some Chilli Peppers from a pair of AKG K240 Sextetts 600 ohm streaming Tidal MQA version of the album and the volume is almost maxed it still rocks them almost forgot how good they sound with some good rock music. Not bad for $80 and headphones that are over 40 years old.

 

[funkymartyn]

Well after reading up on your thread and a load of others, like most off us tend to do ..Always helps to get other opinions. All I can add is Price, Requirements, what you want it for, storage, wifi, Bluetooth, ...etc.
Take it you have already tried out other daps in the past ?
Well everyone is saying get the new Fiio M11, M11 pro, .....But its not cheap, And its early days...
How about the cheaper Fiio M9. ? or the M7 which i have ( two of them ) I don't need all the extras on the m9 , or m11, yet anyway.
These M7 only have 2 gb internal storage for your music....But you can add a micro sd 512 gab card. I only use the 256 gb for now which holds loads of mp3 ( 320) and Flac files...Most play ok, and most show the art work...Battery life is very good. Very easy to use, and load up... you can get 4 colours. Loads i could say about these M7..... But do your research......And your needs.
I use mine on decent iem ear phones, or grado sr 60, sr 225, and sr 325....all ok , no amp required...and you can use line out to use your hifi system.. or Bluetooth.....etc.....good enough for around the £150 they cost.. Good Luck.

 

[SilverEars]

Hey all, I am in need of some guidance. I am looking to upgrade from my ipod classic and have been reading up on different DAPs for about a week now and it has kind of become an obsession and I think I just need to choose one for my sanity's sake lol.

My budget is $300-500ish. I would love to keep it closer to $300, but if there is something that makes a world of difference I am willing to go up a bit.

I am looking for something with good sound quality, lots of storage space a decent UI, and good battery life. I am not opposed to other features such as bluetooth and streaming capabilities but they really aren't selling points for me. With my current headphone set up (ITO1 and Grado Sr80e) I am not too worried with a dap being able to power them but it would be nice if it could power better ones if/when I decide to upgrade.

I think I have narrowed my decision down to two: ibasso DX120 and the fiio m11. I like how they both have a very large storage capacity and really I am leaning towards the dx120 since it is cheaper and from what I have read the sound quality is decent but the m11 is just so sexy looking to me. xD any thoughts either between these two or even a different dap entirely? I am open to any suggestions!

One concern I do have and it may be groundless is the life span of a dap, especially android based ones. A lot of them strike me as a smartphone without the phone and I haven't had a smartphone last me 5 years without crapping out on me. Is it possible to get 10 years or so out of these modern daps like I have my ipod?

Edit: then again there is the plenue d2, but I heard the ui leaves much to be desired

Yes, go with something cheap. No sense in throwing gobs of money on stuff that will devalue real fast with new models coming out constantly. Check out Shanling stuff. Lots of features at reasonable prices.

Look for features you are most interested in, and look at the various DAPs to see if they have those features, and if they fit your price-point and seem like good cheap values.

 

[jeejack]

If u are on budget a good choice are cayn n3, fiio M 6,7,9. I listened to these and i own N3 and M9

 

[Linkednetwork]

I have a hiby r5 and it's great with good power output and sounds great. I don't like the fiio because it has older android with limitations. Ibasso, on the other hand, looks the best in my opinion but the sound is not as good as the hiby imo from the few ones I listened to.

 

[pjones5]

Hey all, I am in need of some guidance. I am looking to upgrade from my ipod classic and have been reading up on different DAPs for about a week now and it has kind of become an obsession and I think I just need to choose one for my sanity's sake lol.

My budget is $300-500ish. I would love to keep it closer to $300, but if there is something that makes a world of difference I am willing to go up a bit.

I am looking for something with good sound quality, lots of storage space a decent UI, and good battery life. I am not opposed to other features such as bluetooth and streaming capabilities but they really aren't selling points for me. With my current headphone set up (ITO1 and Grado Sr80e) I am not too worried with a dap being able to power them but it would be nice if it could power better ones if/when I decide to upgrade.

I think I have narrowed my decision down to two: ibasso DX120 and the fiio m11. I like how they both have a very large storage capacity and really I am leaning towards the dx120 since it is cheaper and from what I have read the sound quality is decent but the m11 is just so sexy looking to me. xD any thoughts either between these two or even a different dap entirely? I am open to any suggestions!

One concern I do have and it may be groundless is the life span of a dap, especially android based ones. A lot of them strike me as a smartphone without the phone and I haven't had a smartphone last me 5 years without crapping out on me. Is it possible to get 10 years or so out of these modern daps like I have my ipod?

Edit: then again there is the plenue d2, but I heard the ui leaves much to be desired

I'll join in to suggest the FiiO M11 as well. Tried out the FiiO M11 Pro and wasn't impressed, so the FiiO M11 it is! I didn't like the DX120 because of how it looks, it looks like a toy! The M11's build quality is fantastic, I just love holding it. Unfortunately, most DAPs these days are running some sort of Android-based platform, so I doubt you'll get 10-years out of them. Now, with the M11 you can run "pure music mode" which will enable the FiiO music app alone. If you're like me and use streaming services then that won't work. Now, the custom-Android platform does suggest to me that'll last longer than your stereotypical android phone. Problem is though too, most these DAPs have a lithium-polymer battery in them because you can get a larger capacity in a smaller case. Lithium-polymer batteries are like the cousin of the lithium-ion, but with a slightly shorter life span. Lithium-ion (what's in iPhone's) are rated for 300 to 500 charge cycles. Lithium-polymer, supposedly, top out around 300-400. A "charge cycle" is a full battery being drained to zero and then charged to full again. I've had my iPhone for two-years and have taken decent care of the batter (never letting it get below 10% and trying not to charge it past 90%). It's been two-years and the battery health (which is shown in settings) is at 84%, which means the capacity of the battery will never exceed 84% (even if it says 100% charged). That said, battery decline isn't linear, I believe it'd logarithmic (not my area of expertise). All of that to say, in looking at these DAPs - it doesn't matter which one you get, in about 10-years you're going to have that thing plugged in and charging about 85% of the time. If you take care of the device - keeping it in cooler temperatures (not too cold, not too hot, like goldilocks), not letting the battery percentage drop below 50%, and only charging it to about 90 or 95%, then I think you could get a solid four to five years before you notice any severe decline in battery capacity. Now, if you're plugging it in overnight (letting it charge even though its at 100%) and then draining it to 0% and letting it sit at 0% for days, then you'll find after a couple years that its nothing more than a paperweight.

All of that to say... the first thing to go on the M11 will be the battery, not the customized-Android OS. Fortunately, battery health is largely in your control. If you take care of it, then it'll last a long time. Plus, the M11 has that crazy standby mode which is going to prolong the life of the battery even farther. I don't even know if the DX120 has that.

In short, I vote the M11.
I looked seriously at the Hiby R6 Pro, Shanling M6, a variety of Sony walkmans, even the DX220. All of them boast of some pretty sweet specs, but the M11 offers the greatest bang for your buck at $400 compared to like $600 starting.

 

[Sebasistan]

If you can live without bells and whistles, don't need streaming or BT, I would strongly join the recommendations for the Cowon Plenue D2. It punches way above its weight sound quality wise. Yes, the UI is not great, but you get used to it. It's a great first DAP. And since it doesn't run on Android, it has quite the ridiculous battery life in comparison. It's very bare bones. No wifi, no BT, no nothing. Just plays music very well. The downsides are the rather limited storage capacity (128GB isn't a lot, but at least it's got 64GB internal memory). Otherwise, try getting a used FiiO M11. That dual SD card setup is hard to beat, storage wise, and supposedly it sounds great. It was the one I had set my sights on - but then a used AK SR15 crossed my path...